Bio:

You probably have never heard of Edlin Nordass. But then again, why should you have heard of him. Edlin, or Ed most often, was a man of no specific or outstanding genius other than an acute attention to detail and unyielding adherence to agency policy. Perhaps it’s these attributes, or detriments depending on one’s point of view, are precisely why no one in particular has ever heard of Edlin Nordass.

You see, after serving as an intelligence officer during the war, Ed pursued a law degree at the University of Chicago. However, he was soon persuaded to abandon his studies and “make a real difference in the world.” At least, that’s how the bureau’s recruiters sold it to him. Ed quickly settled into a life of faithful service to the Bureau of Investigation (precursor to the FBI) after leaving Chicago in 1914.

Ed quickly rose in rank and popularity due to his keen intellect and outgoing nature. During the waning years of Director Bielaski’s appointment as head of the Bureau, Edlin was generally considered to be the favored candidate for Bielaski’s replacement.

Then, late in 1916, Edlin was put on special assignment and paired with a young upstart from the Justice Department, named John. The pair went undercover investigating an off-shoot religious group suspected of foul play in several unsolved murder cases. The Justice Department believed they could bring key members of the group to court by prosecuting them for tax fraud and so requested the aid of the Bureau in building a case. While Ed had experience in the intelligence community and was able to distance himself from the mission, his inexperienced partner drew closer into the closed circle that lay at the heart of this bizarre, though fiscally unblemished, group of zealots. Having not found sufficient evidence to bring the members to court, the case was dropped.
Edlin wrote up a lengthy and scathing report on the matter, especially noting John’s emotional involvement in specific detail. Perhaps more disturbing than having to admit defeat in the case, Ed found that his former partner was still attending the group’s secret and strange meetings even after John’s cover had been revealed.

Ed continued to write cautions against the situation to both his supervisors in the Bureau and their counterparts within the Justice Department. Since nothing ever became of his reports, Edlin dropped the issue assuming the situation would quietly resolve itself in typical bureaucratic fashion.

Edlin’s assumption that the issue would pass turned out to be far off-base. In 1919, Edlin’s strongest supporter in the Bureau, Director Bielaski, unexpectedly and without solid explanation stepped down a and quit the service. Within months of Bielaski’s resignation, Edlin was surprised to learn that his former partner, John, had been promoted to head of the newly formed General Intelligence Division within the Justice Department. John’s career was skyrocketing while Edlin’s rise in the Bureau fizzled.

The endgame for Edlin’s career came in 1921 when John, in a mind boggling turn of events, became deputy head of the Bureau of Investigation. Edlin’s former junior partner now turned supervisor made him painfully aware of his knowledge about the scathing reports filed years ago and Edlin was unceremoniously forced out of the service within the year.

You probably have never have heard of Edlin Nordass, though you likely have heard of his one time partner John, better known to us as John Edgar Hoover. And while Edlin’s place in history is relatively unknown, Hoover’s 48 year reign as director of the Bureau was riddled with similar tales of personal attacks and strange occurrences.

Edlin left the Bureau somewhat bewildered and fearing further recourse from Hoover. Ed’s fears were confirmed when is former mentor, Director Bielaski, was kidnapped in Mexico and Hoover point blank refused to act on the case. Ed began to suspect that Hoover’s involvement in the occult may have had much to do with his unwarranted rise to power. After Bielaski’s disappearance, Ed began investigating the cult group once again. In an effort to avoid unwanted attention, Edlin moved to Newport, RI and took a part time job as a librarian. In historic Newport under the guise of a humble librarian, Ed found that had access to abundant research materials during the day and the freedom to move without gaining Hoover’s unwanted attention at night.